Empowerment and help-seeking for violence among Filipino women victims of intimate partner violence: Analysis of data from the Philippine National Demographic and Health Survey
1
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of the Philippines Manila, City of Manila, Philippines
2
Department of Clinical Epidemiology, University of the Philippines Manila, City of Manila, Philippines
Popul. Med. 2026;8(Supplement Supplement 1):
ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT:
Introduction. A key strategy to stopping intimate partner violence (IPV) is for women to disclose and seek help for their experience, but only a small proportion of IPV survivors do so. This study aimed to determine the association between women’s empowerment and help-seeking for IPV among Filipino women. Methods. We used pooled data from the 2013, 2017, and 2022 cycles of the Philippine National Demographic and Health Survey. We created an empowerment index (range 0-17) based on indicators related to asset ownership, decision-making, and attitudes towards wife beating. Respondents were classified into “low,” “moderate,” and “high” categories based on terciles of the index. Help-seeking outcomes were defined according to the source of support: formal (e.g., medical personnel, police), informal (e.g., family, friend, neighbor), and any. We estimated odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals using logistic regression models with robust variance to account for outcome dependencies, and included survey year indicators to adjust for secular changes. Results. Of 4,832 women experiencing IPV, 17.9% sought informal help, 3.1% formal help, and 20.0% any help. Informal sources were mainly family (65.9%), while formal help most often involved police (61.6%). Empowerment was positively associated with help-seeking. Moderate empowerment was associated with higher odds of informal (aOR = 1.33; 95% CI: 1.08-1.65), formal (aOR = 1.69; 95% CI: 1.05-2.71), and any help-seeking (aOR = 1.39; 95% CI: 1.12-1.71). High empowerment was also associated with higher odds of formal (aOR = 2.36; 95% CI: 1.48-3.74) and any help-seeking (aOR = 1.26; 95% CI: 1.01-1.59). Conclusion. Women’s empowerment is strongly linked to help-seeking for IPV. Strengthening empowerment in traditionally patriarchal societies may increase disclosure and utilization of support systems. Strategies should focus on improving gender consciousness, supporting women through resource mobilization and skills training, and expanding women’s access to and control over household economic resources.
Introduction. A key strategy to stopping intimate partner violence (IPV) is for women to disclose and seek help for their experience, but only a small proportion of IPV survivors do so. This study aimed to determine the association between women’s empowerment and help-seeking for IPV among Filipino women. Methods. We used pooled data from the 2013, 2017, and 2022 cycles of the Philippine National Demographic and Health Survey. We created an empowerment index (range 0-17) based on indicators related to asset ownership, decision-making, and attitudes towards wife beating. Respondents were classified into “low,” “moderate,” and “high” categories based on terciles of the index. Help-seeking outcomes were defined according to the source of support: formal (e.g., medical personnel, police), informal (e.g., family, friend, neighbor), and any. We estimated odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals using logistic regression models with robust variance to account for outcome dependencies, and included survey year indicators to adjust for secular changes. Results. Of 4,832 women experiencing IPV, 17.9% sought informal help, 3.1% formal help, and 20.0% any help. Informal sources were mainly family (65.9%), while formal help most often involved police (61.6%). Empowerment was positively associated with help-seeking. Moderate empowerment was associated with higher odds of informal (aOR = 1.33; 95% CI: 1.08-1.65), formal (aOR = 1.69; 95% CI: 1.05-2.71), and any help-seeking (aOR = 1.39; 95% CI: 1.12-1.71). High empowerment was also associated with higher odds of formal (aOR = 2.36; 95% CI: 1.48-3.74) and any help-seeking (aOR = 1.26; 95% CI: 1.01-1.59). Conclusion. Women’s empowerment is strongly linked to help-seeking for IPV. Strengthening empowerment in traditionally patriarchal societies may increase disclosure and utilization of support systems. Strategies should focus on improving gender consciousness, supporting women through resource mobilization and skills training, and expanding women’s access to and control over household economic resources.
| eISSN: | 2654-1459 |
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